Eliminate bed bugs as you welcome back campers

by Tommy Underhill
April 26, 2021

Camps across the country have been closed during the pandemic... and people can’t wait to return! Don’t assume that any bed bugs that survived your last treatment starved this past year— adult bed bugs have survived in laboratories without food for as long as 550 days and they will be hungry! As far as bed bugs are concerned, as we continue to return to business as usual— whatever that ends up looking like, you will be hosting a camp grand-re opening special for them: a potentially unlimited buffet of guests that will become their next meals.

Bed bugs continue to be one of the most difficult pests to control and are frequently reintroduced with each new cohort of guests. These insects are expert hitchhikers, easily making the journey into or out of your camp by hiding in clothing, bedding, electronics, and luggage. Bites can cause irritations ranging from itching to a rash to blisters. Severe cases can result in infection or allergic reaction and may need medical treatment.

According to Brotherhood Mutual Insurance, “If a camper’s interaction with bed bugs results in injury or financial damage, your camp could potentially be liable for any expenses incurred. Costs associated with paying medical bills, refunding a portion or all the camper’s tuition, and paying to treat the camper’s home could reach into the thousands.”

DIY doesn’t need to make you cry

Brotherhood Mutual Insurance offers the following advice: “The following often are considered ineffective and potentially dangerous measures used by do-it-yourselfers: ammonia, bleach, fire, gasoline and kerosene, wasp spray, bug bombs, and overuse/improper use of agricultural or outlawed insecticides bought on the internet. Use of these can result in toxic fumes, serious injuries, and property damage.”

Traditional bed bug treatments can take weeks and will destroy your reputation in the interim. Heat is the only single-treatment protocol effective for bed bugs and other insects. Join the hundreds of hospitality managers, property management companies, and pest control professionals who have decided that self-treating with heat is the most effective and economical method of bed bug elimination available to camps. One treatment kills bed bugs and their eggs with GreenTech Heat Titan 800.

The proper heat equipment and training from GreenTech Heat Solutions will allow your maintenance staff to proactively treat apartments, barracks, and cabins in a single day and certified as bed-bug free between guests without fear of exposing anyone to additional allergens or toxic pesticides. Camps can treat an occupied cabin for bed bugs while the campers are away on a day hike.

Kill them all and prevent bed bugs for up to a year

Once you have eradicated bed bugs with your GreenTech Heat equipment, use GreenTech Prevent to create a residual barrier to continue killing bed bugs for up to a year after the heat treatment. Prevent can be sprayed on upholstered materials like couches and chairs, beds and bedding, carpets and other fabrics. This applied barrier can help prevent re-infestations which may be the result of a guest who happens to bring bed bugs into the treated location, or if an untreated adjoining unit allows for a migration between units that are being treated.

GreenTech Prevent is an after heat treatment barrier guard that continues to kill bed bugs up to 12 months. For preventive use only as a residual barrier after a heat treatment. No chemicals: natural, soy-based formula. Non-toxic and will not stain fabrics. No odor. Easy application. GreenTech Prevent helps you keep bed bugs from ruining your good reputation.

World-class equipment and training

Our Master Heat Technician Certification program provides world-class training developed over 30 years for your maintenance staff and gives you additional peace of mind that your guests, employees, and staff will be safe from bed bug bites. Schedule safe and efficient bed bug heat treatments between move-out and move-in. The Titan 800 with the RCS recirculation system quickly brings a cabin up to temperature for rapid bed bug heat treatments— even in the middle of Winter!

Insurance companies suggest your staff keep excellent records surrounding anything to do with bed bug: complaints, proactive heat treatments, and as-needed and reactive bed bug heat treatments. Camps that keep excellent records and treatment logs according to protocol are more successful in showing that reasonable steps were taken to eliminate or control infestations, especially when routine heat treatments are conducted by certified Master Heat Technicians. If a claim is ever filed, your insurance company will want your records. Having well-documented procedures for regular heat treatments and inspections show that your camp actively takes measures against infestation—and can prove it. Ensure that maintenance, cleaning staff, counselors, and program staff understand the importance of accurate documentation and preserving all records.

Empirical results backed by university studies

Bed bug claims across the hospitality industry continue to rise. The total cost of one bed bug claim— medical bills, tuition refunds, replacing belongings, and paying to fumigate the camper’s home could reach into the thousands... even before you factor in negative word-of-mouth, online reviews, and the loss of your good reputation. Business and revenues have been down for too long and you deserve better than that!

Be prepared for when your guests arrive... any bed bugs that survived your last treatment are excitedly looking forward to your guests this spring and summer! The GreenTech Heat Titan 800 will kill bed bugs and sanitize and deodorize cabins (and the rest of your facility, too!) in one convenient one-day treatment.

GreenTech Heat technology is 100% effective for bed bugs, cockroaches, and all other insects. Heat kills microbes, viruses, and bacteria that can cause allergies and odors. GreenTech Heat equipment allows you to self-treat with heat on your schedule and as your needs demand. Our certified training lets you do it right and do it safely the first time. Heat safely kills insects and microbes everywhere they may be found in a single one-day treatment. Call us at 888-699-3944. We have bed bug heaters for sale to get started with heat today.